Jan 30, 2017 3 min read

You may recall that, about a year ago, I did some plumbing in the bathroom. I had to replace both of the drains because one had begun to leak, and the other’s plug had stopped working. Or something like that; I tend to forget problems once they have been solved.

But for whatever reason, I had to change both drains. It was miserable and it took me several attempts (and days) before I got them replaced with no leaking.

My husband has sworn off plumbing (he can’t be good at everything, right?) and was therefore little help. Typically, when a plumbing issue arises that I can’t handle, I call a friend and ask when he can come over before I even notify my husband of the problem. It has been beneficial to our marriage that it works this way.

Anyway, that is the backstory: I’m not a great plumber, but in our house I’m all we’ve got.

So about a week ago, I noticed that the one side of the sink had stopped draining properly. It drained, but exceedingly slowly, which unfortunately allowed all of the soap scum and dirt to leave numerous rings of filth in the bowl. It was getting on my nerves.

So, I made an all-natural drain cleaner out of salt and baking powder, set it off with vinegar, and followed it up with boiling water. The water drained out so slowly that it wasn’t even warm anymore by the time it was gone.

I used enzyme-based drain cleaner next. Didn’t touch it.

The drain cleaner I bought that is made from super-harsh chemicals? I could almost hear the clog laughing at me.

Finally, I made the difficult decision to take the drain apart to find out what was down there. I was afraid to look, because clogs in the past have been caused by toothpaste caps, Q-tips, a thimble and many other things. I don’t know how they manage to get these items past the built-in plug, but if there is a way to damage “unbreakable” things, my kids can find it. (They even broke a bowling ball once, but that is a story for another time.)

At any rate, I made the decision and immediately dove in, before I could change my mind. I loosened things, tore things apart, wiggled pipes and eventually removed the drain in its entirety. Therein, I discovered that a large part of the problem was, apparently, my cats’ affinity for lying in the sink.

There was a massive amount of fur in the drain that had become mixed with soap, dirt, toothpaste and shaving cream, and was blocking the better part of the opening. I cleaned it out, rinsed the pipes, and rebuilt the configuration of pipes that we usually take for granted.

I wiggled pipes, pushed things together and tightened things as much as I was able. Tentatively, I turned on the water, and much to my chagrin, a lone drop of water ran down the outside of the drain and dripped onto the floor.

I calmly placed a rag where it could catch the slow drip, closed the doors on the cabinet that hides the plumbing and walked directly to the phone.

Our plumber friend will be here next weekend.

Laura Zoeller can be reached at zoeller5@verizon.net.